


Magic Woman, Put Me Under Your Spell

by WickedHeadache



Category: Runaways (TV 2017)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, Leslie keeps Elle bc that plot was stupid, Magic, Mentions of The Past™, Tina is soft and wants someone to love her, Unresolved Romantic Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-30
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:21:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28438290
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WickedHeadache/pseuds/WickedHeadache
Summary: After opening the portal and taking everyone home, Tina is exhausted. She has used too much of her magic. Leslie decides to take care of her, despite her complaints, and they finally talk.(S3: Leslie doesn't abandon Elle. There's no time jump. Tina has a lot of feelings and Leslie is in love with Tina's magic.)
Relationships: Leslie Dean/Tina Minoru
Kudos: 18





	Magic Woman, Put Me Under Your Spell

Leslie was there when she crossed the portal. 

She hadn't seen her in months, she realized. With all the alien possessions and dark dimensions and Morgan Le Fay, she had had but the split of a second to dwell on her sudden disappearance.

However, seeing her here, in the kids' hideout with a baby in tow was the last thing Tina expected when coming back. Leslie looked at them, all of them, before her eyes settled for Karolina and she immediately ran to wrap her into her arms.

She began to ask for explanations and stories, and her demeanor indicated that she was used to being around them. She had known where the kids were all along. They had shared their space, their lives with her, while all Tina had been able to do was worry.

Then the kids began to give them the side-eye, already annoyed by their parents' presence. Leslie turned towards her with her eyes glimmering so happily and the rest of Pride began to clear out the room. 

Tina felt stuck in place. She should leave. She should go home and get her life together after the mess the alien left behind. She couldn't stick around to… make conversation with Leslie Dean, not without slipping and saying more than a few despicable truths. She would end up losing her cool, revealing too much and being vulnerable before the woman that could smell weakness and explote it.

Then Leslie gestured with her head toward upstairs and Tina snapped out the haze. Her eyes fell, almost instantly, toward the baby Leslie was holding in her arms.

That was definitely new.

She felt the phantom of Leslie's hand skimming over her back, never actually touching, as Leslie guided her up the stairs.

“It's good to see you again, Tina,” Leslie told her once they were standing in the hallway.

“You had a baby,” she blurted out, lifting a disturbed eyebrow.

Leslie exhaled. “I did.”

They stood in silence for a moment before Tina dared to ask the question that haunted her.

“The father…?”

“Jonah,” she answered curtly. Tina can't help but bark out a bitter chuckle. _Of course_. 

“I don't remember much before…” she trailed off, swallowing. She doesn't think she's capable of talking about the alien possession without feeling like screaming. She shook her head under Leslie's attentive gaze. “You disappeared.”

“I- Yes,” Leslie nodded. “That was... entirely Frank's fault.”

That made her pause. Frank Dean, that fumbling idiot, somehow had successfully executed the disappearance of such a force of nature like Leslie Dean. “That makes no sense,” she told her right away.

“It's… complicated.”

“Yes, everything seems to be a special brand of complicated lately,” she muttered.

Leslie fidgeted with her hands. “The kids, they helped me a great deal throughout, well, everything.”

“About that,” Tina narrowed her eyes. “I don't suppose you're going to tell me how you ended up here with the kids, are you?”

Leslie shook her head with what was supposed to be an appeasing smile. “It's not a nice story. And not that relevant.”

“You've been here all along, while we were trying to get them home, and _it's not relevant_?” She stared at her disbelievingly.

“I know how hard this must be for you. What Jonah and his family did to you…” She frowned and looked away, briefly. “The adjustment back to your own life must be difficult.”

“You think?”

“I'm glad that the kids at least had each other through these trying times.”

“And you,” Tina's tone was accusing, just a little bit.

“What?”

“They also had you, didn't they?”

“I guess,” she wrinkled her nose, like that didn't sound quite right. “I _tried_ to be there for them.”

“Of all people, they chose _you_ to help them.”

“That's… the last thing they wanted from me, I think,” she chuckled, self-deprecating. ”But this is not really the most appropriate time to discuss this, Tina.”

The chastising only served to piss her off.

“You know what?” Tina's voice was reduced to a hoarse angry whisper. “Fuck you, Leslie.”

Leslie blinked at her, eyes wide and doe-like, and so stupidly adorable that it wasn't fair. She could see the kids beginning to gather downstairs, peeking up to them. Maybe an open hallway wasn't the best place to start an argument

“Tina…” She said carefully, a tiny wrinkle appearing between her brows.

“What? You think playing the understanding friend is going to work this time around?” Tina scoffed. “I've stopped falling for that act a long time ago.”

Something reminiscent of shame crossed Leslie's face. “I- Tina, I never meant to-” She sighed with a pained look on her face. “I'm sorry.”

Tina clenched her jaw. The worst part was that Leslie seemed sincere. Tina still couldn't recognize she was being played. The good thing was that she didn't need to — this was Leslie she was dealing with. “I almost believe you,” she sneered.

“Tina, do we have to do this _now_?” Leslie shot her a begging look, signaling to the kids with her eyes.

“You betrayed us more times than I can count, you _disappeared_ on us when we needed you the most! For a moment, I was almost concerned that something had happened to you,” she tried to play down her worry, but she knew she failed when she saw Leslie raising a brow. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “I think there's no better moment for this.”

Leslie flinched at her tone, but she did not otherwise seem affected. She rested a hand over the baby's head (Tina was still getting used to that one detail).

“Are you done?” She lifted a brow. Her voice broke a bit, which led Tina to believe she had affected her more than she let on.

“Not even close.”

Leslie sighed. “Then would you mind if I go lie Elle down? You can keep going when I'm back,” she sniffed as she flicked her hair away from her face with a jerk of her head. “Meanwhile you could explain to me what exactly happened in the dark dimension. I get the feeling Karolina left a lot out.”

Tina rubbed the bridge of her nose. “Fine,” she gritted.

Her chest ached from the whirlwind of emotions affecting it. The relief of seeing Leslie again from the unadulterated resentment for _everything_ . For preferring Jonah, for having his child, for lying about Amy, for being necessary to Pride, for staying, for _leaving_. 

And now she was back.

And now she had another child. With _him_.

She felt exhausted, emotionally and magically. Casting such a powerful spell by hand after channeling her magic through the staff for so long took a toll on her, and seeing Amy again ripped her wounds open and healed them all at once. Nothing that a few hours of sleep and a lot of repression wouldn't fix.

“What's wrong?” Leslie's concerned voice snapped her out her thoughts.

She realized that she had been staring at the floor for the whole time Leslie was away.

“Nothing,” she brushed her off, sharpening her voice. It fell flat.

“Tina,” Leslie admonished her, like she hadn't been the one getting snapped at minutes ago. She was biting her lip, considering something Tina wasn't aware of. “You look really tired.”

“You're being overdramatic.”

Leslie ignored her. She stepped forward, having no qualms about invading her personal space. She placed a hand in her shoulder and brushed a lock of hair off Tina's face oh-so-gently. 

“Come on, you can yell at me later. You should go to bed now.”

Tina narrowed her eyes, but didn't jerk away from her touch. She was seriously considering denying the affection out of spite. She would, if it weren't for the open sincerity of Leslie's actions. Leslie wanted to take care of her, no ulterior motives involved. A part of Tina that she had never particularly cared for craved for the attention.

So she let Leslie turn her around, hand soft at the small of her back, and guide her to a room.

“I should go home,” she couldn't help but argue, make it seem like she was being pulled against her will.

“It's just one night here,” Leslie said, a smile curling in her lips. “Besides, I need details about what happened in this dimension.”

That made her groan inwardly. She was reminded of all the new problems that she had to solve, her past catching up to her. Morgan was back. “I hate you right now.”

“What's new?” She drawled.

Tina peeked at Leslie from the corner of her eye. She was looking down on her fondly. A lot was new, and a lot was old, she came to find. The feeling of tenderness that was taking over her chest was very much _old_ and manageable in comparison to the constant disaster her life had been for the last fifteen years.

“Leslie…”

“Hm?” 

“I am just… so frustrated,” she explained, even though there was more to it. So much more that she could not begin to put into words. She wanted Leslie to know, to understand, especially now that she seemed receptive and honest unlike… before. “There's so much going on.”

“I know,” Leslie nodded gently.

“But I don't… hate you. Not really,” she admitted, because she needed this. She needed closure.

“Oh.”

Leslie stopped on her tracks. Tina turned her head, puzzled eyes searching for the cause of her reaction. Leslie seemed stunned.

“Leslie?”

Leslie shook her head and smiled reassuringly at her before opening a door and motioning to her to walk in. Tina stepped inside and spotted a crib right away.

“This is… your room?” Tina lifted her brows.

Leslie tucked her a lock of strawberry blonde hair behind her ear, sheepish. “We are out of rooms. I hope you don't mind.”

Inwardly, Tina was not looking forward to sharing a room with a newborn, much less one that wasn't her own.

“I don't,” she said. “Where are you sleeping then?”

“Oh, don't worry about it. I'm not all that tired. You can borrow my room for as long as you need.”

Tina stared at her for a moment, her eyes flickering from Leslie's blue eyes to the gentle curving of her lips and the golden curls falling down the sides of her face. She nodded curtly, then sat down on the mattress.

Leslie turned around and closed the door behind her.

* * *

Nico watched Leslie rushing down the stairs with a concerned frown in her face. Not what she was accustomed to see in people after a fight with her mom.

“What's up with my mom?” She asked.

Leslie crossed her arms. “She needed to rest,” she explained, looking conflicted. “She was… drained. I haven't seen her like this in years. What happened?”

“She had to open a portal,” she paused, waiting for the shock in Leslie's face, like she had observed in Stacey and Victor. Instead, all she found was attentiveness. “It required a lot of her magic. It was really impressive, actually. I didn't even know you could cast spells like that.”

“Oh. No wonder it was so easy to calm her down.”

Leslie sighed, resigned. It confused Nico — wasn't that a good thing?

“My mom is mad at you?”

“It's a long story,” Leslie gave her a wry smile. Nico waited for her to elaborate. “Do we have any food left?”

Nico's brows furrowed. “I think?”

“Good, I'm gonna make something for her. She should regain her strengths,” she said.

“O-okay.”

She and Karolina exchanged a look as Leslie walked away. Something felt out of place about Leslie's behavior, but she couldn't quite put her finger on what it was.

* * *

With the palm of her hand stretched open, Tina began to mutter the incantation, latin words she never completely understood stringing together. Her fingertips skimmed over her palm as her other hand hung above it, fingers dancing meticulously along. They traced shapes that became figures that vibrated with her magic.

It was exhilarating.

Then, as the last words poured out of her, she stilled. She lifted one hand, pulling from the figures with her fingertips, and observed as color bloomed. Five small blue petals emerged out of the middle of her palm, one after the other fluttering open. They were followed by the branch, equal in size, and soon she was holding between her fingers one single forget-me-not flower.

A delighted chuckle escaped her lips. It had been awhile since she last used magic for a trivial thing. She forgot how good it made her feel. She used to practice, experiment, create beautiful things out of nothing all the time.

Tina flicked the flower between her fingers before turning her torso to the side to put it on the nightstand. She froze. Her eyes flickered to the silhouette in front of her. Leslie was leaning on the doorframe with a little smirk in her lips and a crooked eyebrow. She had a tray full of food and a water bottle in her hands.

“Leslie,” she frowned, confused as to why she was back.

“It seems you have a knack for straining yourself,” Leslie remarked.

“What do you mean?”

“You _just_ finished opening a portal to escape from another dimension and you're already doing your little tricks?”

_Tricks_. Tina pushed down the wave of fondness that surged through her. Leslie had been the only one that called her spells that.

“Do they bother you?” Tina stared at Leslie, challenging her to object to her magic.

Leslie met her gaze, unaffected. “Not at all. They're as beautiful as I remember.”

Tina opened her mouth, only to find she had no words to say. Leslie's eyes were suddenly too meaningful, too suffocating, and Tina had to look away.

“And the food?”

“I thought you would need it,” Leslie put the tray on the nightstand, next to the forget-me-not flower. She offered her a lopsided grin and sat at the edge of the bed. “I heard you put on quite the show.”

The beginning of a smile tugged on the edge of Tina's lips before she could stifle the emotional reaction. 

She looked at the tray, then back at Leslie. “Thank you,” she said, because she did have manners. She hummed nonchalantly. “So you were here all along, with the kids.”

“I was.”

Tina bit the inside of her cheeks. She thought about screaming, demanding, asking for justification. She thought about hurting Leslie, if she even possessed the ability to do so. She thought about crying, letting her emotions show, only to shut down the idea before she could put it under consideration. 

At the end, she did none of this. She found a calmness that did not feel her own and asked, “How was it?”

“I don't think any of them wanted me here,” Leslie answered honestly. “I don't know if it was because of who I am and what I've done, or because they feared I might leave and look for you, for Pride,” she chuckled dryly. “It was probably both.”

“Why didn't you?” The question left her lips before Tina thought better of it. “Why didn't you come to us? We would have protected you.”

Leslie shot her a skeptical look. “Let's not pretend I was actually wanted there. Do you think I could not see all of you _glaring_ at me every time I did so much as open my mouth?” She said. She did not sound angry, however, just straightforward. “At least be candid with me, Tina. I have always liked that about you.”

Tina blinked, momentarily caught off guard by Leslie liking _anything_ about her, by her holding an opinion about her character that was not tied to her value as an associate.

“Leslie, if you think for _a second_ that I would have allowed for anything to happen to that baby, you don't know me at all.”

Leslie's expression was condescending and familiar, and so frustrating. She lifted one hand to Tina's cheek. She held it and caressed it, always wistful, always herself, even as Tina felt she was different, not quite as _Leslie_ as she remembered her.

“Would you have been able to confront Jonah?”

Tina said nothing. They both knew the answer to Leslie's question. Neither of them could have stopped him. Leslie had been powerless against him and Tina had been trapped inside her own head, slowly taken over by that _thing_ , that girl that was not exactly a girl, but at the same time not like Jonah at all.

Leslie let her hand fall down and turned around, but did not leave yet.

As Leslie sat there, her presence somehow comforting, Tina laid her hand open and allowed her fingers to skim over it, a quick latin incantation spilling out of her. Her magic glowed, so warm and safe and _hers_ , and she observed a little pink forget-me-not flower emerging from the palm of her hand.

Leslie had turned her head as soon as she heard her speak and was now smiling at Tina's hands, fascination gleaming in her eyes. Holding the flower in her fingertips, Tina handed it to her and watched as Leslie beamed at her.

Leslie admired it absent-mindedly, caught in its wondrous origin, and Tina's heart fluttered with triumph.

Yes, this was how she liked her Leslie.

“You're giving me that look again,” Leslie commented nonchalantly, eyes never straying from the flower.

“What look?”

Leslie teared her gaze away at last and looked at Tina knowingly. She raised one suggestive eyebrow. Tina found herself blushing. She prayed that Leslie wouldn't be able to notice. Her prayers, of course, went unanswered. Leslie spotted the pinkish hue of her cheeks and released a pleased giggle.

“You're adorable.”

Tina scowled. “Excuse me?”

Leslie's smile only grew. She looked fondly at her in silence before shaking her head to herself. Her face dropped to a more polite, demure expression. She stood up and turned around. She established a few steps of distance between them.

“I should let you rest.”

Tina didn't know this, but she was staring at Leslie's back with sad, confused eyes. “Oh. I thought-”

Leslie turned around and, as she noticed Tina's little pout, she softened instantly. “Yes?”

“Nevermind.”

Leslie pressed her lips together, stopping herself from arguing with her. She seemed to be bracing herself for something, and Tina could see the cogs shifting and turning in her head as determination began to shine Leslie's eyes and-

All of the sudden, Leslie was getting nearer. So near to her that Tina had to physically drift backwards. She was starting to lean over the bed, one of her hands instinctively holding her up to the mattress, and Tina's breath left her body. Her mind was bombarded by one thought only, over and over again. Everything else vanished.

Oh.

Tina swallowed.

Leslie was going to kiss her.

Leslie was holding her gaze, a nervous smile in her face. Tina was frozen. Her mind was unsure of how to react to Leslie's unpredictable actions. Her eyes flickered down to Leslie's lips. She couldn't possibly go along with this, could she? 

Then, Leslie lifted the pink forget-me-not flower in her free hand and put it on Tina's black hair. 

“Thank you for the flower,” Leslie said softly as her fingers caressed her hair and the side of Tina's face. “It's beautiful. Almost as beautiful as you.”

To her own surprise, Tina deflated slightly, disappointed by this turn of events. On the other hand, Leslie had called her beautiful. It had been years, over a decade even, since somebody had complimented her for anything other than her work. Leslie was also touching her, constantly, gently. It was distracting.

And for all of Leslie's confidence, her expression had turned nervous and her cheeks were increasingly becoming as pink as Tina's. Leslie's fingers slid down, slowly skimming over the line of Tina's jaw, and Tina couldn't take it anymore.

She leapt forward, throwing caution to the wind, and closed the distance between them. Tina wrapped an arm around her neck and pulled her into a kiss. Leslie let out the cutest squeal and instantly melted into her, and, yes, Tina might be more than a little enamoured.

There was too much history between them — too much trust and betrayal, too much heartbreak — but Tina was beyond caring. She deserved a moment of contentment, she figured, even if it lasted a few seconds.

When she pulled back, Leslie was smiling wide, even as she looked like she was on the verge of tears. One of her knees was over the mattress and her hips were pressed to Tina's thigh. Leslie traced her cheekbone and the bridge of her nose with her fingers, her bright eyes flickering across her face contemplatively.

“Goodnight, Tina," she said in a broken whisper and pecked her lips softly before walking away.


End file.
